Monday, May 7, 2012

DANCE to UNITE (DtU) #2

                                 A Founder's Diary #2: 
         
                      The Story Behind The MISSION of Dance to Unite
                             
Dance to Unite's mission is to use dance as a vehicle to achieve unity and peace.
We offer youth a program of free dance classes, which include an educational component, as the means to learn about different cultures. 
Our mission is to promote acceptance, appreciation of diversity, a sense of unity and peace.

THE BACKGROUND
To explain why our mission means so much to me I would have to travel back in time, to the time when I was a Hebrew school teacher and a volunteer Hip Hop dance teacher simultaneously.
I spent my time traveling from Westport, Connecticut to NYC's Lower East Side projects. Those two seemingly different paths intercepted quite a few times in my life and made me realize that I was blessed to have something unique to offer; I was able to create a connection between different groups of kids and myself through my Israeli culture. Those two paths' ultimate interception provided the base for a new path to unfold; the path that led to our Dance to Unite program's mission.

THE CULTURAL CONNECTION
As a Hebrew school teacher at The Conservative Synagogue in CT, my obligation was to teach Jewish religion, tradition, history and the Hebrew language.
As a volunteer dance teacher for the non-profit organization Groove With Me I focused my teaching on choreography, structure and dance technique.
Both in Groove With Me and at the Synagogue I was unaware of the influence I had on my students as an Israeli. The connection my students began to develop to the Israeli culture happened unintentionaly, it evolved naturally based on our human connection. Over the years I began to realize the significance and responsibility that one holds when representing one's culture. A personal connection, be it with one singular person, can put a face on a whole country, culture and people. I firmly believe that it can be used as a tool to transform judgement into a new form of understanding, connection and appreciation.

MY "TRAINING YEARS" FOR DANCE to UNITE
Two years into teaching Hebrew school I was approached by two concerned mothers of my students with the request to revive the youth groups' programs. They wanted to strengthen the bond between their kids and the synagogue upon the completion of their Bar / Bat Mitzvah studies. I had no idea what the job entailed, they insisted that all they needed was someone that their kids felt a connection with. The genuine concern for their kids' future and the promise of creative freedom, made me accept the job. That evening I became the Synagogue's Youth Director, now all I needed to learn was what it meant...

"LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF"
To become a Hebrew school teacher and a Youth Group Director was a constant ongoing learning experience. The goal was to connect kids to their culture and religion. When you have passion and care, others (especially kids) pick up on it and then they begin to care and it becomes a group effort. That's the only explanation I have for our phenomenal youth group success: we cared!
The commandment "Love your neighbor as yourself" was the common thread in all of my teachings. As a secular Israeli who "fell" upon a religious job, it was what I related to the most. Writing the commandment's words in Hebrew, on top of the classroom's blackboard, served as a constant reminder to my students and myself of what's really important: to conduct ourselves in the world as people who care about one another!

The classroom in Ct, with the Hebrew words: "Love your neighbor as yourself"
                                   
FROM CONNECTICUT TO HARLEM WITH LOVE
Our very first youth group event was a trip from Connecticut to Harlem to see a Groove With Me performance. It was the perfect opportunity to introduce both groups of kids to one another. The underlying message of the event was: "Love your neighbor as yourself" with the explanation that we should love everybody, after all it doesn't say love only your Jewish neighbor or any other specific requirement, it is inclusive of all people. It was a wonderful beginning to a successful youth group programming career and also the beginning of an incredible friendship. On our first event I met Robin Schletter, a students' mother, who later on became our youth groups' Chair Person, currently Dance to Unite's President of the Board and one of my dearest and closest friends.

MY A-HA MOMENT
A certain Groove With Me dance class will be forever ingrained in my mind. The year was 2005, my 12 year old student Christina (who I have known since the age of 6) stormed into the dance studio frantically, covered my body as a protection shield and announced anxiously to me and the rest of the students: " I will not let you go, I will not let you go, you can hide in my room!", I was confused and replied that I am not going anywhere and wanted to know what she was talking about, she continued: " We learned in school that they were taking the Jewish people and you are Jewish ... I want you to know that you have a safe place with me", as she was talking I realized that she was referring to the Holocaust and World War 2. I calmed her down and reassured her that it happened many years ago and that I am safe. Her reaction was endearing to me but more than that it served as my A-HA moment. I realized, for the first time, that I became her association to a whole group of people.

HEBREW AT THE APOLLO THEATER
In 2008, we were thrilled to find out that our winter Groove With Me show would take place at Harlem's World-Famous Apollo Theater. Over the years, the kids in my class selected the music for the dance choreography, to my surprise the Israeli music that was often played in the background, to set up for class, was chosen by my students for the performance at the Apollo. As exciting as it was, I had to play devil's advocate, simply because the idea of it made me nervous. I wasn't sure if they were ready to perform to music that was unfamiliar to their families and friends, after all it is important for teenagers to stay relevant to their own popular culture. So I tested them with questions: What if no one claps at the show? What if your friends ridicule you? How comfortable would you be with Hebrew at the Apollo? They stayed adamant and unanimous in their choice of music. Their firm determination made me so proud and it also provided a clear indication of the bond that had developed between us and our cultures. They chose to dance to the Israeli song "Mimamakim": "Out of the Depths"; a love song based on Psalm 130 with a modern twist.


                            

             Click to watch the video of the girls dancing at the APOLLO to the Israeli song "Mimamakim"


Standing in the wings of the Apollo Theater, listening to Idan Raichel's "Mimamakim" and watching the girls dance with passion and pride to the words playing in Hebrew, was a life changing experience. I felt the need to take the message of unity further, it was the right time to step up and provide more opportunities for kids on the lower east side. Less than a year later Dance to Unite had launched. Two and a half years into the program, over 150 kids in the Lower East Side and Brooklyn enjoy our weekly DTU classes.

CHALLENGES ARE NEEDED
The summer of 2009 marked the beginning of Dance to Unite. It was an exhilarating experience to explore the foundation of a non-profit organization, yet the creation of our Dance to Unite program was not an "easy ride". There were plenty of challenges, but none of them made me give up. Even though it was painful to witness adversity, to the point of having a few breakdowns, it was the focus on what's really important that kept me going: the need to spread the message of our mission. In a way those challenges were beneficial, they served and still serve as a helpful indication of how much unity is needed and how much a program like Dance to Unite can make a difference.

IS UNITY NEEDED IN NYC, THE SO CALLED " MELTING POT"?
A challenge that was unexpected came from some of my closest friends, I remember my friend's comment: "We live in the NY area, my daughter goes to kindergarden with kids of different races, what novelty would Dance to Unite have to offer?"
Her comment, as uncomfortable as it was, was golden! It made me realize that there is another type of challenge; the "quiet challenge"of people who are not even aware of the need for unity.
Life in NYC automatically surrounds you with people of different cultures, that does not mean that we understand or care about each other, we are not necessarily united. My personal observation of that fact left me with many unanswered questions: How come next door neighbors, such as Chassidic Jews and African Americans, never communicate? How come certain immigrants live for decades in NYC and are not able to communicate in English? How come the only Israeli that the kids in the inner-city got to know was myself?

THE ESSENCE OF DANCE TO UNITE'S MISSION
Why those questions bother me? I can't say ( perhaps my first blog post can shed some light on that), but the point is that together we can do something about it, we can take action and create a change.
Teaching kids in different cultural environments made me realize that the only reason that connections are not made is that there are few tangible positive opportunities for multi-cultural interactions.
Dance to Unite strongly believes that having youth learn about different cultures will enable them to develop the respect and appreciation needed for our world to move in peace. We use the art of dance as a vehicle to achieve this goal since dance is an activity that transcends all barriers and serves as a powerful means for communication.
NYC has all the potential ingredients, the mix of different cultures, to come together, learn about each other and from each other and create "authentic" unity.  Bringing that potential into reality, through the art of dance, is the true essence of the mission of Dance to Unite!

LET'S CONNECT
Thank you for reading my blog! I am excited to share with you my story and invite you to join me on this fascinating journey. I would love to know your thoughts, answer questions and give advice to anyone with an interest!

Check out our website: www.dancetounite.org
Follow us on twitter:  @dancetounite
Forward all questions/comments to Galit Adani at : galitadani@me.com

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